Michael McCarthy (Cork South West, Labour)
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565. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the actions her Department will be taking after the recent report released by the national review panel concerning children who have died in care, after-care or known to the Health Service Executive in 2012; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [50163/13]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I welcome the publication of the nine individual reports and two Annual Reports of the National Review Panel established under HIQA Guidance to review child deaths and serious incidents. While it is important to acknowledge that in some cases, disappointing deficiencies in practice are highlighted, it is also important to acknowledge that case work has improved. Managers and front line professional staff are more aware of the importance of recognising and responding to neglect while making sure that the long term impact on the future health and well being of a child is also recognised and responded to with good quality services.

Key themes emerging from the reports include the importance of prioritisation and good assessment of referrals, working with young people who are resistant to being helped, suicide prevention and early intervention for children experiencing neglect. The HSE has commenced a process of sharing the learning from these case reviews with its frontline staff, together with learnings from the initial phases of the audit of neglect files. As a consequence of learning from these and similar cases, managers and staff are instructed to make sure they build close working relationships with colleagues in other disciplines and agencies to support vulnerable young people such as those featured in these reports.

There exists now a significant opportunity in bringing together a multi-disciplinary team in the formation of the Child and Family Agency to respond in a more cohesive and coordinated way to the needs of children and young people who present with complex issues which need to be responded to by a range of agencies and disciplines working across sectors. Strong interagency arrangements between the new Child and Family Agency and the HSE will continue to be vital and protocols are already in development in anticipation of the establishment of the new Agency.

I also intend to strengthen the operation of the National Review Panel by asking HIQA to undertake an audit/oversight role in relation to the processes of the Panel. HIQA are agreed in principle to take on this oversight role and discussions are ongoing in relation to the detail.